History Of Lithuania Research Articles

Lithuanian Proverbs as a Source of Natural Law Regulations in the Historical Writings of Simonas Daukantas

The purpose of this article is to argue that Simonas Daukantas used the material of Lithuanian folklore, mainly proverbs, as a historical source in his works on the history of Lithuania, and analyze his reasons for doing that. Daukantas used the Lithuanian proverbs as a source for studying socio-moral and legal attitudes, and elucidating their role in the process of history. He was most interested in identification and clarification of Lithuanian customary law norms and natural principles, relying on proverbs. Folklore data was instrumental for Daukantas in proving that the social order in ancient Lithuanian history was based on natural law, and there were natural regulations that fostered the natural human freedom and industriousness.

Studium historyczne na Wydziale Humanistycznym Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie (1919–1939)

The operations at the University in Vilnius, reactivated in 1919, were stabilized only after the Polish-Bolshevik War and the incorporation of the Vilnius Region into the Commonwealth in 1922. Over the majority of functioning, the SBU's authorities encountered issues with maintaining the full staffing. The positions adequately filled were limited to those within the Department of Polish History, the Department of Modern History, the Department of Medieval History and Auxiliary Sciences of History, and the Department of Eastern-European History. Stanisław Kościałkowski, Felix Koneczny, Kazimierz Chodynicki, Ryszard Mienicki, Janusz Iwaszkiewicz, Teofil Emil Modelski, Stanisław Zajączkowski, and Henryk Łowmiański are among the notable representatives of Vilnius' Clio that need to be mentioned. Despite continuous development, the University had a regional character. Both the academic studies and programs offered by the historical departments were focused on the history of Eastern Europe, notably on Polish-Moscow relations and the history of Lithuania, specifically the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Vilnius. The academia remained overshadowed by national universities. However, it was perceived as a vital institution by the Kingdom of Poland and the citizens of Vilnius, having a significant impact on the shape of Polish identity and culture.

DIONIZO POŠKOS RAUDŲ ISTORINĖ TOPIKA

The article investigates the source of the historiographical topic of heroic paganism in the laments/elegies of Dionizas Poška (1764–1830). It is known that Poška read the manuscript of the first history of Lithuania (1822) by Simonas Daukantas (1793–1864). The article hypothesises that the choice of Poška’s written language ‘to lean towards the Samogitian dialect’, and the increase in a lexicon characteristic of the historiographical genre in the laments, are connected with his reading Daukantas’ manuscript. Since until now researchers into Daukantas’ legacy do not agree on the date of the completion of his first manuscript history, it is believed that research of this kind will make it possible to clarify it. The research leads to the conclusion that Poška read the ‘History of Lithuania’ by Daukantas in 1824, because in verse dating from that year we find a lexicon which is characteristic of Daukantas’ work. In elegies written after 1824, Poška found Lithuanian equivalents of the traditional topics of the heroic and lost nation, which are often taken from the text of Daukantas, and are not literal translations of Polish literature. Daukantas’ text inspired Poška to talk about a lost Golden Age, and so he can be considered a pioneer of Lithuanian historical elegy. Following Daukantas, the poet learned to replace rhetorical writing with an authentic expression of thought characteristic of Romantic authors.

“Svitrigailo, Grand Duke of Lithuania, or Supplement to histories of Lithuanian, Russian, Polish-Prussian” : Translation and Publication of Work of August Kotzebue in Russian Empire

The issue of the history of the translation into Russian of the historical work of the German playwright August Kotzebue “Svitrigailo, the Grand Duke of Lithuania”, which was published in 1835, when the name of the famous German author had already become a sign of bad literary taste, and his works ceased to be published. For the first time, the study introduces into scientific circulation materials from several archives that store documents that allow us to draw conclusions about why Kotzebue’s essay on the history of Lithuania and Poland has been lying on the shelf of the censorship department for more than a decade. The results of the study showed that the manuscript could not be allowed for publication for a long time, not because of the scandal around the tragic death of its author, and not because of the new heroized interpretation of the image of Svitrigailo. The real reason for oblivion was the additions (documents from the Königsberg archive) with which Kotzebue supplied his work. The author of the article reports that, among various historical materials, three papal bulls were presented at the end of the manuscript, related to the project of a possible reunification of the Latin and Greek churches. It was these documents that delayed the publication of Kotzebue’s work in Russian. The archival materials involved show that the censorship of the first quarter of the 19th century considered the dissemination of materials related to the issue of unification of churches dangerous for Russian society.

Tatars in the History and Culture of Lithuania from the 14th to the 21st Centuries: the Latest Researches

The Parliament (Seimas) of the Republic of Lithuania the year 2021 declared as the year of the history and culture of Lithuanian Tatars. Lithuanian Tatars have left a bright footprint in the history of Lithuania, and they are a part of its history as well. The descendants of the Tatars of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania live in three countries: Lithuania, Belarus and Poland, and their compatriots – in Crimea, Tatarstan and Turkey.
 Among the events of the commemorating programme of the Year of the History and Culture of Lithuanian Tatars, which was approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, is the international scientific conference “Tatars in the History and Culture of Lithuania from the 14th to the 21st Centuries: the latest researches”, which took place on the 9th–11th of September 2021 at the Faculty of Philology of Vilnius University live and remotely. International conferences, dedicated to the research of Lithuanian Tatar history, culture, writing and religion, are being organized periodically in Lithuania. As well as at the other conferences, the manuscript heritage (kitabistics) of Lithuanian Tatars – the field of researches, which is being the mostly developed – was discussed at this conference too.

Polsko-litewskie dziedzictwo kulturowe – różnice w świadomości społecznej. Perspektywy zbliżenia dzięki wspólnym bohaterom narodowym na przykładzie Michała Kleofasa Ogińskiego

The uncomfortable situation of Poles in Lithuania is, among other things, the effect of Lithuanian historical education. Excerpts from the textbook on the history of Lithuania show diametrical differences in contemporary ideas about the past of both nations. Shared heroes are useful to overcome prejudices of the previous century (which affect the image of 1385-1795). One of them is Michał Kleofas Ogiński, Lithuanian nobleman, a political activist during the last years of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and two decades after its collapse. He has the rank of a great national hero in Lithuania and Belarus but is valued in Poland above all because of his piano compositions. The analysis of fragments of his work Memoirs about Poland and Poles helps us to regard a representative of the noble nation from a different perspective. It makes us aware of the cohesion of Polish and Lithuanian national identity at the turn of the 19th century, helps us to appreciate the heritage of the past and offers a chance to build positive relations between us. Rectifying a distorted vision of history is a prospect for a mature partnership now and in the future.

The Archeology of Speech. Language as a Testimony to the History of Lithuania in Franciszek Ksawery Bohusz’s Thesis „On the Origins of the Lithuanian Nation and Language“

Franciszek Ksawery Bohusz (1746–1820) was a philosopher, theologist, Jesuit, political activist, participant of the Kościuszko Uprising, member of the Warsaw Society of Friends of Science, honorary member of the Vilnius University, translator and publisher of the Napoleon Code, who was also the author of the thesis On the Origins of the Lithuanian Nation and Language (1808). The thesis was written in an effort to save from forgetting the traditions of the people whose language, as the author noted, gradually “diminished” and “faded” at the beginning of the nineteenth century, being crowded out by Polish which was used in various areas of everyday life. Bohusz’s work turned out to be a significant voice, a testament which raised interest of many Lithuanian culture researchers. It contributed to the longterm study of the history of the Lithuanian nation and language by numerous Vilnius University professors and students.

The Intellectual Games of Teodor Narbutt: Šiauriai as the Museum of the Lithuanian Antiquities

The article analyses a particular 19th century manor, classed among the category of the so-called intellectual manors – Teodor Narbutt’s (or Teodor Mateusz Ostyk-Narbutt, 1784–1864) Šiauriai manor (Pol. Szawry; Grodno Province, since 1843 – Vilnius Province, Lyda County). All the texts by Narbutt – fictional as well as the scientific works, including the famous Dzieje narodu litewskiego (The History of the Lithuanian Nation, vol. 1–9, Vilnius, 1835–1841) – were collected in this place. Throughout the years, the manor became a unique workshop for the historian in which one could find a rich library, collections of manuscripts, and Lithuanian artefacts. Up until now, the researchers have focused most of their attention on the contents and the assembly of Narbutt’s collection of books and periodical publications, while the collection of artefacts has received less limelight. The collections of historical documents, numismatic objects, and art pieces, which for the landowner-historian were no less important, have also been left on the margins. The aim of this article is: by employing the already analysed and completely new archival resources, take a different look at the col­lections once stored in Šiauriai, while, at the same time, cultivating the idea that the gathering of them was particularly purposeful and was perceived as a formation of a “compulsory” material, necessary for the writing of the history of Lithuania.

Profesor Ignacy Daniłowicz i jego spuścizna paleograficzna. Uwagi na marginesie transliteracji „Latopisca Litwy i Kroniki Ruskiej”

Pochodzący z Podlasia XIX-wieczny uczony, profesor Uniwersytetu Wileńskiego, a następnie kolejno Charkowskiego, Kijowskiego oraz Moskiewskiego, Ignacy Daniłowicz pozostawił po sobie bogatą i wartościową spuściznę naukową. Prawnik i historyk z wykształcenia, przejawiał też niemałe zdolności językoznawcy i paleografa zafascynowanego językiem ruskich dokumentów do dziejów Litwy. Pracę z nimi niewątpliwie ułatwiała mu znajomość podlaskiej mowy. Główna uwaga w tekście skupiona została na sposobach transponowania na alfabet łaciński Latopisu supraskiego, który powstał na początku XVI wieku jako tekst cyrylicki. Analiza zastosowanych przez Daniłowicza rozwiązań w zakresie transliterowania samogłosek i spółgłosek pokazała dobre opanowanie warsztatu paleografa mimo braku przygotowania językoznawczego.

Battles in the History of Medieval Lithuania

Battles are defined as military encounters involving formations sufficient to act under their individual banners. These can be armies of individual dukes or counties or lands. The minimal threshold for a military encounter to be defined as a battle is that it should involve not fewer than 300 combatants on each side. Smaller encounters are defined as skirmishes. Historical significance of a battle should be assessed taking into account its impact on further military and political developments. Any battle having a significant impact on the context of the nearest decade should be viewed as decisive. In the history of Lithuania, the period of 1203–1435 was a time of great medieval battles. Their abundance was determined by two warfare fronts, namely, the Lithuanian war against the Teutonic Order and the expansion to the Ruthenian lands. Out of 45 battles of the above-mentioned period reviewed in this paper, 27 were fought against the Teutonic Knights and the Livonian Brothers of the Sword (four against the latter), fourteen in the Ruthenian lands and for the Ruthenian lands (against the Ruthenians and the Tatars), two against the Poles, and two were battles of domestic feuds. Incidentally, although the statistics of the Ruthenian front looks rather modest, the warfare was hardly less intense than the one with the Teutonic Knights, as the available source material on these fights is much more fragmentary. The paper outlines ten battles which can be identified as decisive. These are the battles of Saulė (1236), Durbe (1260), Aizkraukle or Ascheraden (1279), Garuoza (1287), Medininkai (1320), Strėva (1348), Blue Waters (1362), Vorskla (1399), Tannenberg (1410), and Pabaiskas (1435). Many of them have received a lot of attention in the historiography; however, the battles of Garuoza, Medininkai and, partly, even Aizkraukle are still neglected. Besides that, it should be admitted that the impact of certain battles is hard to evaluate due to the shortage of data . These are the battles of Ropaži (1205), Usvyaty (1226), Toropec-Usvyaty (1245), Protva-Zubtsov (1249 m.), and Irpen (1323 m.); they carry attributes of decisive battles, too. Although historiography tends to concentrate on victories, almost half of the reviewed battles (namely, twenty) were lost by the Lithuanians, including two decisive battles of Strėva and Vorskla. These two incurred a major damage to the situation of the Lithuanian state. Hence, although the Lithuanian state managed to maintain the upper hand in the fights of the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries, it was far from easy, and painful defeats were part of the deal (see Table 5). Eleven of the reviewed battles took place within the territory of modern Lithuania and may be subject to archaeological research. However, the precise location can be identified only in two cases (Pabaiskas in 1435 and Palanga in 1372) and, in two other cases (Strėva in 1348 and Rudamina in 1394), the locations can be established within a certain range of certainty. Regarding the locations of other battles, which so far have been identified only approximately and often inaccurately, hypotheses can be raised and proved or rejected using methods of archaeological research. As for the battles that took place outside Lithuania, archaeological research should probably concentrate on the ones that happened near or on the ice of well-identified lakes (Usvyaty in 1226 and 1245, Zhizhitsa in 1245, and Kotelno in 1426 in Russia, and Nebеl in 1262 in Ukraine), as such sites may preserve some sunk medieval munitions.

Sociocultural Lituanization in gymnasiums of national minorities in Kaunas 1926–1940

In this article sociocultural lituanization in gymnasiums of national minorities in Kaunas in 1926–1940 is analysed as well as teaching (learning) of subjects of Lithuanian language and literature, History of Lithuania and its results are discussed. The attitude of gymnasiums’ communities for the lithuanization of the pupils is evaluated. The study found that in 1926–1940 the pupils’ skills of the Lithuanian language and literature and the History of Lithuania improved, but the desired level of Ministry of Education wasn’t reached. Jewish and Russian gymnasiums were more favorable for the lithuanization; however, Polish and German gymnasiums were less favorable.

Lietuvių terminologija atkurtosios nepriklausomybės pradžioje

Lietuvos nepriklausomybės atkūrimo 30-osioms metinėms skirtame straipsnyje terminologiniu aspektu nagrinėjama po sovietmečio prasidėjusio reikšmingo Lietuvos istorijos tarpsnio – nepriklausomybės – pradžia, to meto problemos. Daugiausia dėmesio skiriama Lietuvių kalbos instituto Terminologijos skyriaus veiklai. Nepriklausomybės pradžioje jame dirbti svarbiausi terminologijos mokslo ir praktikos darbai – pradėtas leisti terminologijai skirtas mokslo žurnalas, terminologiškai vertinti terminų žodynai ir standartai, plėtota terminų duomenų bazės idėja.

Historia wspólna – historia osobna. Polsko-litewskie transfery kulturowe: Margier i Kiejstut

The article shows examples of Polish-Lithuanian cultural transfers. The legendary Lithuanian hero Margiris and Lithuanian Prince Kestutis (the father of Vytautas the Great and the uncle of Polish king Wladyslaw Jagiello) were perpetuated in old chronicles (15th–17th century) and by Polish 19th century researchers of the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Owing to their interest in pre-Christian history and folklore, Margiris and Kestutis became the heroes of numerous literary works: novels, poems and dramas. In the works of Ignacy Kraszewski and Wladyslaw Syrokomla, Margiris became a symbol of true heroism. Unable to defend the fortress of Pilėnai from the Teutonic Order, he burns everything that could be valuable to the enemy together with the inhabitants and commits mass suicide as the last one. Kestutis, on the other hand, became a model for the last duke – a Lithuanian, allegiant to the faith of his ancestors, a representative of the bygone Lithuania. The 19th century participants in the Lithuanian national revival sought the sources of Lithuanian national identity and culture in the pre-Christian Lithuanian tradition. Since the adoption of Christianity, Lithuania had been gradually losing its independence. It had undergone polonization, russification, or germanization. It had been subject to foreign influences. According to the leading activists from the circle of J. Basanovicius, the national revival had to begin with a turn towards the past: tradition and language, which had been preserved mainly in rural culture. The works Mindowe by Juliusz Slowacki, Tak umierali Litwini (Thus Died Lithuanians) by Drucki-Lubecki or Kiejstut by Adam Asnyk belonged to – as defined by A. Bumblauskas, a contemporary Lithuanian historian – the Great Narrative. These dramas were translated into Lithuanian and were performed on amateur and later professional Lithuanian stages at the turn of the 19th century and in the interwar period. Syrokomla’s Margier and Kraszewski’s Kunigas were translated into Lithuanian, adapted to stage plays, and also served as inspiration for other works of drama. Asnyk’s Kiejstut translated into Lithuanian (1897) and dramas which did not gain attention of Lithuanian circles: F. Jakubowski’s Kiejstut. Tragedia z dziejow Litwy. W pieciu aktach wierszem napisana (Kestutis. A Tragedy from the History of Lithuania. Written in Verse in Five Acts, 1858) and J. Turczynski’s, Kiejstut (1861), show the final months of the life of Kestutis, his conflict with Jagiello and his death in the dungeon. The aged Kestutis is portrayed as a respected knight, the vanquisher of the Teutonic Order, who subordinated himself first to his brother Algirdas and then to his nephew Jogaila (Jagiello) for the good of Lithuania. His death brings an end to the period of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a fully independent state. In the character of Kestutis, the playwrights combined the ethos of knighthood, national identity, adhering to faith and tradition with nostalgic awareness of transience, and the prophetic vision of rebirth based on national traditions.

КОРРЕЛЯЦИЯ МЕСТНОГО ЛАНДШАФТА И КАТЕГОРИИ ТВОРЧЕСТВА В ПРОСТРАНСТВЕ БЕЛОРУССКОЙ КУЛЬТУРЫ

The paper investigates the correlation of a small homeland, or more broadly, a landscape, with the work of many Belarusian writers, artists, scientists. This correlation can be very significant, and even becomes for many of them the main component of the creative process in life. The article analyzes the work of Belarusian writers who have become classics, for whom the theme of the homeland takes a central place: Ivan Naumenka (the novel «The pine-tree at the rode», Mikhas Streltsov (the short story «Hay on the Afalts»), Boris Sachenka (the trilogy «Vyaliki Les»), Larisa Geniyush (memories «Confession»). In addition to the homeland, another place where there is a correlation, is Kiev and other places in Ukraine, where many Belarusian distinguished people lived and worked. These are the princes of Ostrog – Fedor, Konstantin and Vasilii. In this work, we draw attention to the indissoluble connection between the Belarusian and Ukrainian life and activities of the Ostrozhski family. A native of Belarus, the famous Ukrainian hetman, creator of the first Ukrainian constitution Philip Orlik (1672–1741) studied at the Kiev-Mohyla Academy. Saint George of Konisskyi, was born in 1717 in the city of Nizhyn (Chernigov region), was a church and public figure of the Commonwealth and the Russian Empire. Graduated from the Kiev-Mohyla Academy (1743). In 1755 he was ordained Bishop of Mogilev (Belarus). In 1993, Archbishop George was canonized. The prominent historian Mitrofan Viktorovich Dovnar-Zapolsky was born in 1867 in Rechitsa (Belarus). In 1893 M. Dovnar-Zapolsky graduated from the historical and philological faculty of Kiev University. Author of over 150 works on the history of Lithuania and Belarus. Writer Vladimir Korotkevich (1930–1984) is a significant figure for many generations of Belarusians. It is a national symbol of the second half of the 20th century. He graduated from the philological faculty of the Taras Shevchenko Kiev State University in 1954.

Between the tropes and pragmatics: the rhetorical aspect of Rozmowa polaka z litwinem

This paper presents rhetorical aspects of a sixteenth century Lithuanian polemical treatise “Rozmowa polaka z litwinem” (“Pasikalbėjimas lenko su lietuviu”). This anonymous work is often labeled as “humanist”. Even though many scholars analyse its contents and emphasize references to the Classical Antiquity, formal aspects and their pragmatic implications remain unevaluated. Scholars have mainly focused on the issue of it authorship and quoted it illustrating cultural and political sixteenth century changes in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The main aim of this article is to reveal rhetorical tropes and figures employed by the author of the treatise and discuss the possible motivation of their selection. “Rozmowa” responds to, “Quincunx”, written in 1564 by a Polish polemist Stanisław Orzechowski (1513–1566). It is a part of a prolonged polemic between the later and Lithuanian Chancellor, Palatine of Vilnius Mikalojus Radvila “The Black”. The details and the course of their dispute is reconstructed by Orzechowski himself in the letter to Piotr Miscovius, which also is titled “Apologia pro Quincunce”. He refers to the “Rozmowa” without mentioning its title or particular author. Historiography attributes it to the Vilnius mayor (wójt) Augustyn Rotundus (c. 1520–1582). Both Orzechowski and Rotundus studied abroad and had spent some time in Italy. Not only curricula of their studies of artes liberales were influenced by Classical Antiquity, they also undoubtedly got familiar with humanist culture of the contemporary Europe.“Rozmowa” consists of two main parts, which are separated by a verse. The treatise is written in a form of a dialogue, and allows to portray a vivid discussion and multiple points of view. The first part of “Rozmowa” focuses on the questions of the political theory, whereas the second one is dedicated to the history of Lithuania, its dynasty and the issue of the Polish-Lithuanian Union. While the first part is polemical, the second one has epideictic character. The author employs personification, paradiastole and antithesis. The latter two allow changing the normative contents of political concepts, and irony highlights the absurdities in the Polish political practices. The Lithuanian, one of the characters, uses deprecation and interpellation, addresses the absent participants of a dialogue (e. g. Orzechowski himself). The author quotes Ancient authors, Scripture, Church Fathers and contemporary thinkers (e. g. Machiavelli and Erasmus), whose ideas provide him with literary topoi. Merged with the rhetorical techniques, they constitute the political arguments of the treatise and allows the author to express one’s political ideas.

The Situation of Teaching History in Jewish Gymnasiums and Progymnasiums of Lithuania in the Period of 1919–1940

The aim of the present study is to explore the situation of teaching History in the Jewish gymnasiums and progymnasiums in the period under discussion, and alongside to reveal differences in the content of teaching history in Jewish and Lithuanian schools as stipulated by the country’s government. The study is based on the documents found in Lithuanian Central State Archives available in the collection of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Lithuania (f. 391), and in the collection of the Jewish society “Tarbut” (f. 552); use was made of the periodicals of that period, for instance, the Jewish newspaper Apžvalga (The Overview). The obtained findings revealed that after the First World War, in the newly established state of Lithuania, Jewish children could attend government-funded schools with Lithuanian as the language of instruction. The government allowed the Jews to find their own private gymnasiums and progymnasiums with Hebrew and Yiddish as the languages of instruction. That kind of schools soon appeared in different towns in Lithuania: in 1919 such schools were established in Kaunas, Marijampolė, Virbalis, and Vilkaviškis; in 1920 – in Skuodas, Kaunas, Ukmergė, Panevėžys, Šiauliai, Telšiai, Kalvarija; in 1921 – in Jurbarkas and Raseiniai; in 1922 – in Ukmergė, Kėdainiai and Alytus. The number of those schools was steadily growing as new schools were established: in 1923 – in Kaunas, Šiauliai, Utena, Mažeikiai, and Kretinga; in 1925 – in Panevėžys, Kaunas, and Tauragė; in 1926 – two schools in Biržai and Kaunas. In the period under discussion, 30 new schools were founded. In later years, the situation was gradually changing as the number of newly founded schools decreased, and some existing schools had to close for certain reasons. All the afore-mentioned Jewish schools, both gymnasiums and progymnasiums, followed three different ideological directions, and thus three networks of Jewish schools had been formed: Tarbut (a worldwide network of schools with Hebrew as the language of instruction), Yavneh (orthodox school with instruction in Hebrew), and the Culture League network (secular school with instruction in Yiddish). To some extent, those different school networks pre-conditioned differences in the approaches to the teaching content in the school curriculum. The study has revealed that as the subjects taught in private Jewish gymnasiums and progymnasiums focused on Jewish identity, the mother tongue was given top priority. In most Jewish schools, Hebrew took this position, and only several schools chose Yiddish as the first language. There were cases of disagreement and even conflicts arising over the language of instruction and its influence. As religion played a very special role in Jewish identity, several Jewish identity-related subjects were taught at schools: “The Bible”, “The Talmud”, “Torah”, “Mishnah”, and the like. Subjects of religious education were given several weekly contact hours and occupied the key position among other subjects in the curriculum. Jewish history was the second in importance. The present study has revealed that the syllabus of history comprised three subjects: world history, the history of Lithuania, and Jewish history. Up to 1924, school head teachers were authorised to design school curricula independently and to assign a certain number of contact hours to each subject. Within the context of history teaching during that particular period, the greatest number of hours was allocated to the teaching of Jewish history. From 1924, school curricula did not distinguish Jewish history as a separate subject any longer. However, in reality, the segment of Jewish history remained strong, except that it came under the subjects of world history and the history of Lithuania. The findings of the present study suggest that the content of Jewish history included materials of the period from the end of the fifteenth century up to the beginning of the twentieth century. Most attention was given to the issues of Jewish history in Europe and the surrounding countries. Among the topics of the teaching content, the emphasis was placed on the issues of the study of the Judaic tradition, the most prominent rabbis, outstanding philosophers, and renowned figures of Jewish culture. In the 1930s, it became common to focus more on the issues of Jewish emigration of the end of the nineteenth century and issues of Zionism. Teachers Jews sought to achieve enhanced teaching of Jewish history in their gymnasiums and progymnasiums whereas education officers of Lithuania sought adequate teaching of the history of Lithuania to ensure an adequate education for the young Jews to become dedicated citizens of Lithuania, the country they belonged to.

Johannes Hevelius’s Selenographia Manuscript in Vilnius

Johannes Hevelius’s Selenographia Manuscript in Vilnius

ОБСТАВИНИ ОБ'ЄДНАННЯ ЛИТОВСЬКИХ АНТИРАДЯНСЬКИХ ПАРТИЗАНІВ У 1946–1949 РОКАХ

In 2019 comes the 70th anniversary of the founding of LLKS – the Union of Lithuanian Freedom Fighters (Lietuvos Laisvės Kovos Sąjūdi). This underground organization had been founded in February of 1949. It united the people, who had been fighting against the Soviet power in Lithuania. Heads of the LLKS were active partisans and they called themselves freedom fighters. In the same time, other people called partisans ‘forest men’, ‘greens’ etc. The main purpose of this article – to consider the process of unification of the forces of Lithuanian partisans under unified command and to highlight the main circumstances of this process. The article is based on the archival materials and modern research writings. So far, very few research papers about Lithuanian anti-Soviet struggle have been published outside Lithuania. That’s why one of the goals of the author – to provide the information about this episode of the modern history of Lithuania to Ukrainian readers. Perhaps, the similarity with Ukrainian national insurgent movement during the 2nd World War will be found. The final ambition of the armed struggle of Lithuanian partisans was the creation of free democratic Lithuania. Partisans considered the mistakes of Lithuanian state-building during the interwar period, such as authoritarian regime and weak social politics. Freedom fighters hoped to get help from the West countries – Great Britain of the USA – through the mediation of Lithuanian emigrants. The unification of partisans was difficult because of the activity of infiltrated Soviet security agents. The chronological framework of the article covers the period of 1946-1949, when where held the main events of the unification of partisans. Active partisan struggle against the Soviet in Lithuania power lasted to 1953.

Political Exclusion and Bipolar Structures of Historical Justice. Memories of WWII among Lithuanian Russian-Speakers in the Context of the Politics of History in Lithuania and Russia


 [only abstract in English; full article and abstract in Lithuanian]
 In Lithuania, the politics of history center on Lithuania’s Soviet occupation and post-war resistance, while in Russia the focus is on the USSR’s victory in WWII and the USSR’s role in the liberation of Europe from fascism. I argue that the politics of history in Lithuania and Russia create mutually exclusive, institutionalized, bipolar historical structures, according to which justice for one nationality is presented as an injustice to another. This article draws on the analysis of the politics of history in Lithuania and Russia as well as my own ethnographic research in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda among Lithuanian Russian-speakers and Lithuanians in 2016–2017. I show how in Lithuania, the politics of history surrounding WWII commemorations create the political exclusion of Russian speakers, which is experienced and unmade by personal justice and reconciliation stories of Lithuanian Russian-speakers as well as Lithuanians. In the context of geopolitical insecurity, which intensified after the Russia-Ukraine conflict, bipolar historical structures gain increasing significance as political tools; they are an outcome of both Lithuania’s and Russia’s politics of history.

The most significant date in Lithuania’s history

The 16 February is the most significant date in Lithuania’s history. In 1918, an independent democratically-run modern civic state was established, together with the restoration of the statehood tradition cherished in the ancient Lithuania (1253-1795). On 16 February 2018, we celebrated the birth of a modern Lithuania. This date is like a bridge between the old Lithuania born on 6 July 1253 and the new independent Lithuania restored on 11 March 1990. Had it not been for the 16 February, there would have been no events of 11 of March, nor the subsequent success story. In the lead-up to the Centennial of the Restoration of the State (hereinafter – the Centennial), the past is seen not only as a reason to celebrate the important anniversary but also as an inspiration to reflect the historical significance of the past for today and the relevance of the issues of today for the past, i.e. the centennial achievements of the state and its people, and our ambitions for the next centennial which is fast approaching. The Centennial of the new Lithuania is a success story. The main achievements are as follows: Lithuania has become a player of the European and world history, with its modern civil society aware of the importance of freedom and the responsibility that goes with it, and with new emerging vistas for action for the Lithuanian state and its people. Building of the modern Lithuanian state in 1918 was based on the principles of the equality of all, as well as the freedom and prosperity, and this is why all freedom loving people of the country and Lithuanians living abroad, for the first time in the history of Lithuania, became the creators of their state, and later on, during the years of the occupation – the guardians of its tradition. The heroes of the restored Lithuania are thousands of those of different nationalities, religions and social groups having built and safeguarded the tradition of the Lithuanian statehood and national identity. They include volunteers, farmers, teachers, architects and engineers, athletes, aviators, clergy of various denominations, Righteous among the Nations, freedom fighters, dissidents that challenged the Soviet regime, people that created the liberation movement Sąjūdis, and the Lithuanians living abroad that preserved the idea of statehood and fostered the Lithuanian traditions. The hero of today is each individual living in Lithuania and each Lithuanian living abroad, who actively contributes to the building of Lithuania of the twenty-first century and knows that his daily efforts have an impact not only on the present but also on the future of the history of the Lithuanian state and the nation. Apart from the most important symbol of the Centennial, the national flag, we have our state symbol Vytis, bridging the two Lithuanias – the old and the new. The Centennial has revealed our capacity to draw the best from the depths of the past for the needs of the present; we are always ready to give our responsible and often times hard efforts for the bettering of our state and the people; we stand for our freedom, when this fundamental value is threatened; we have the vigour to build not only our own but also the European and world history. These things serve as the basis for us being proud of the achievements of the restored Lithuania, while inspiring us to work for the present and be hopeful about the future.